Cruisers Yachts 60 Fly Review

The 2017 Cruisers 60 Fly adds a new dimension to the 60 Cantius—and that dimension extends upwards.

By Lenny Rudow

June 30, 2017

Our Cruisers 60 Cantius: Delux Weekender or Patio Party-Time review digs deep inside this boat, but most of the time we spent aboard was, in fact, on the Cantius’s inside. Why? Because on an express-style cruiser like this, the cabin is where most of the action takes place. Social and entertainment areas are focused in the cabin, and although the Cantius series extends these social areas into the great outdoors by joining the cockpit with the cabin via an opening aft bulkhead and galley window, there’s simply a lot more territory to explore in the cabin than there is out on deck. In fact, the only other social area on the 60 Cantius is on the bow, where there’s some seating and loungers. How can you add an entirely new entertainment zone to a boat like this? Drop a flybridge on top. Sure, that requires a few sacrifices, but it also opens up a whole new world of opportunities. Take a look for yourself, in this Cruisers Yachts 60 Fly video boat review.

As we mentioned, one often-cited trade-off of adding a flybridge is ruining a sleek boat’s looks. We don’t think that happened here, though you’ll surely decide for yourself if you feel the 60 Fly is a looker. The other trade-off one makes is in losing the giant overhead sunroof. On the express version this is a real highlight, as it opens the entire cabin up to natural light and ocean breezes. There’s no denying this loss, but on the flip side, when you want to enjoy the great outdoors on the 60 Fly although you can’t slide the ceiling away, you can simply head for the flybridge.

The flying bridge on the 60 Cantius Fly has more than enough room for the crew to enjoy sunshine and salty breezes, whether underway or swinging on the hook.

Spending time atop the bridge isn’t exactly a hardship, either. By designing in the food prep stations (grill, ice maker, sink, and refrigerator), the aft settee and dinette, and the forward loungers, the bridge includes everything needed for extended relaxation. In fact, there’s enough room up top for a dozen people, should you so desire.

We won’t dwell on the interior arrangement too much in this review since it’s a mirror of the 60 Cantius, which we’ve already discussed in detail in that model’s review. Bottom line, along with the saloon you get a forward VIP stateroom, an amidships full-beam master, and in-between the two an option to have either a lower saloon and atrium or a third small guest stateroom.

Another thing that remains the same from one model to another is the propulsion and performance. Both come with Volvo IPS 950 diesel pod drives, which put out 750 HP. In both cases this results in a cruise of about 25 knots, a top-end in the 33 to 34 knot range, and a cruising efficiency of 0.5 to 0.6 NMPG. The 60 Fly version weighs only about 1,600 pounds more than the express and the express version’s slight speed advantage is so small it’s barely worth consideration, topping out about half a nautical MPH faster.

One other difference that is worth noting can be found in the cockpit. Thanks to the extended flybridge overhang the cockpit in this version gets a lot more protection. True, you can outfit the 60 Cantius with a Sun Shade which extends aft to shade the cockpit at the press of a button. But the rigid flybridge overhang provides better protection from the rain, plus decreased complexity and increased reliability.

Although it’s not retractable like a SunShade, the flybridge overhang enjoys numerous advantages.

Which type of arrangement is better, the express-style model or the one with a flybridge? Different boaters will have different opinions on the answer to this question. The important thing is that today, this is a choice you can make—and whichever best suits your taste there’s a Cruisers Yachts 60 footer that’s “best” for you.

Other Choices:Sea Ray’s L590 will be a natural competitor. There’s also the Princess S60 to consider, and both of these models maintain sleek express-like looks by utilizing a low-slung flybridge sans hard-top. The Prestige 620 S is also similar in design, though the bridge is a bit smaller and more emphasis is placed on the interior.